


Come Cuddle the Dwarf

by Sugarhihihello



Category: Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Comfort, Friendship, Gen, Male-Female Friendship, Platonic Cuddling, background hawke/fenris, background solavellan, just a super warm fuzzy feelings fic about varric being nice, tent fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-01
Updated: 2015-02-01
Packaged: 2018-03-09 23:27:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,006
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3268235
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sugarhihihello/pseuds/Sugarhihihello
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Lavellan's having a hard time and Varric cuddles her to sleep.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Come Cuddle the Dwarf

**Author's Note:**

> I was sad and wanted Varric to cuddle me so I wrote a self-indulgent fic k.

My thoughts were restless, and the tent was far too cold. I redid the grip wrappings on my staff, rolling the wood between my hands for something to do. Everything was coming to a head. The pressures were mounting on my shoulders every day and the blighted mark was an ache growing sharper.

I sighed, finishing off the final tie and tucking my staff beside my bedroll. It had been a week since Solas took my vallaslin away. A week of sleeping alone. Being the Inquisitor was never easy, but when I had a warm heartbeat to rest my head on, it had been so much easier.

“Varric?”

The dwarf had laid down immediately after entering the tent and hadn't stirred.

“Yeah?”

“Are you asleep?”

He rolled to face me and gave me a look. “Did you just ask that?”

I laughed as he yawned and stretched. I'd grown close to the mismatched group of companions that now made up my world. I thought of most of them as family, but especially Varric. Besides Cassandra, he was probably the best friend I had.

“I wanted to ask a favor.”

“Sure.” Varric closed his eyes, settled his hands behind his head.

“Can we cuddle?”

He opened one eye to look at me.

“Sorry. I know it's weird. Nevermind. Forget I asked.” I made a show of arranging my pillow so I didn't have to look at him.

A few breaths later, he said, “Still broken up over the elf?”

I swallowed. “It hasn't even been a month, Varric. It's gonna take a while.”

He huffed. “Why does this happen to all my friends? I swear, if any other pretty girls I know start making eyes at misunderstood elf boys, I'm going to put a stop to it. Right then and there.”

I frowned. “I'm not sure what you-”

He waved a hand dismissively. “Forget it.”

“It's not just Solas, though. It's... everything.” I rubbed at the glowing crack on my hand. “I'm _tired_. And I need a friend.”

At that, Varric smiled. “A friend is something you definitely have.”

I returned his smile, but still felt too small, too cold. Alone and not enough.

Varric shifted the blankets around on his bedroll, made space, then lifted a corner of the blanket. “Come cuddle the dwarf.”

I let out an awkward laugh. “You don't have to do this. It was an odd thing to ask, I know, and-”

“As long as you keep your hands to yourself so I can face Bianca like an honest man, I'll cuddle you whenever you like, Lavellan.”

My laugh was real that time, and I crossed the tent, settling in beside him.

I felt a little silly and kept my distance, but he put one beefy arm around me and pressed me close to him, tucked the blanket around us like a cocoon. He was so warm, and smelled like ink and spicy cologne, a pricey masculine scent, but under it was something sweet and clean. It was the most comforting thing I'd been near in a while.

His hair, down from his ponytail, mingled with mine as he rested his cheek against my forehead.

I let my arm rest on his chest, and he placed his over mine. I could feel the rise of every breath, a lulling rhythm.

“Thank you, Varric.”

His other hand had come to rest on my side and he patted me gently. “Anytime. Just remember I snore. Loud.”

I laughed softly. His voice was a low hum along my body. “Let me fall asleep first, then.”

He yawned. “Like that'll happen.”

“Tell me a story, then.”

“Are you saying my stories are so boring they put you to sleep? Get out. I'm not cuddling you.”

I clung tighter. “No! I just like the sound of your voice.”

“Hey, me too.” I flicked the inside of his palm and he swatted me back. “Alright. Fine. I'll tell you an incredibly boring story I made up for a friend of mine once. You would've liked her. She was Dalish, too.”

“And you told her incredibly boring stories?”

“She liked happy, predictable stories with lots of fluffy animals.”

I yawned. “Sounds like a nice break from reality.”

Varric ran his thumb over the back of my hand and started speaking, his voice low and warm and gentle. “Once upon a time, there was a village in a valley where nothing interesting ever happened to anyone.”

I laughed and he poked me in the ribs.

“You're supposed to be sleeping.”

With a nod, I said, “I'll be quiet.”

He continued, telling me about the people who lived in the village. Each family had fat babies. Every couple fell in love with no problems. Every garden was filled with daisies.

“But then, one day, a dragon came.” It burned the fields, killing the sheep that roamed there, and was about to set upon the village when gryphons swooped down from the sky.

The sound of his voice and the warmth of his arms had me drowsing in no time.

I fell asleep before I heard the end.

 

\---

 

In the morning, I awoke to Varric's back against mine. We had shifted in our sleep, leaning against each other, ankles tangled.

I slid out from the covers as quietly as I could, but he rolled onto his back to take up the space I had vacated and smiled, hair a mess.

“Good morning.”

I grinned. “Sorry I woke you.”

“It's fine.” He stretched his arms above his head. “Sleep well?”

“I did.” I tucked my hair behind my ear, feeling silly again. “Thank you.”

He reached up and squeezed my hand. “I'm always here if you need me, you know.”

“I do.”

“Good.” Varric tugged the covers up around his ears and curled into a ball. “Don't wake me up until breakfast. And don't let Blackwall cook. That's the price of snuggling. Good breakfast.”

“I will keep that in mind.” I laughed, stepping out of the tent.

Everything seemed so much easier now.

**Author's Note:**

> My dragon age tumblr - <http://andrastesass.tumblr.com>


End file.
